1. Field of the Invention
The present invention reltes to limb restraining devices and more particularly to elbow restraining devices associated with athletic activity.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In various athletic endeavors and particularly in bowling, it is often desirable to take full advantage of the natural pivotal stroke of any limb such as an arm in order to obtain, with minimal effort, constant speed and high accuracy during delivery of the bowling ball. Generally, however, most users and typically the beginning bowler experience difficulty in supporting the ball with the arm in a fully extending position and therefore tend to foreshorten the pivotal length of the arm by bending at the elbow. In this position the player tends to rely on quick elbow articulation concurrent with the release of the ball in order to increase the speed of delivery and to control the ball. Such habits typically result in awkward balancing problems as well as awkward use of musculature to the detriment of the player. Most prior art devices, such as those shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,419,276; 2,809,042 and 3,000,633 are directed at aligning or guiding the pivotal articulation of the arm rather than restraining the articulation at the elbow. Such devices provide an external pivot which in effect limits the pivotal degree of freedom of either the elbow or the shoulder but which permits elbow articulation during the delivery of the ball with the attendant loss of accuracy and balance.